It's My Fault
by OliviaGraham
Summary: Set in the Orichalcos season. This is just a look into the thoughts of Yugi  and Yami throughout the adventure; before, during, and after the time they were separated. Who blames who, and who will not rest until they have earned forgiveness?
1. Chapter 1

**Olivia: I read a few fic like this one, so I thought I'd try my hand at it.**

**Desirae: She's also going to try the whole first person thing. Don't see why though. I was never a fan of this POV.**

**Olivia: Still, it'll be fun at least :)**

**Desirae: We don't own YuGiOh, so stop calling us Kazuki Takahashi. That's not our name.**

**Olivia: Lame joke is lame.**

**Desirae: Oh, really? *stares Liv down***

**Olivia: Uh, um, what I meant was, Enjoy! Oh and FYI, it starts in Yami's point of view and switches after each **-YGO-** thing. The dialogue and names are also an amalgamation of the dubbed and subbed versions.**

**Desirae: They could have figured it out. They're not stupid, at least, I hope they're not. **

**Olivia: I'm only trying to help.**

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><p>I couldn't see any other way around it. I was losing. Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight was frozen and Raphael had the upper hand. So many people were counting on me and my pride wouldn't let me allow myself to be defeated; not when I had a card that could lead me to victory. Slowly I reached for the card and tore it out of my hand. There was no other option I could see. I had to use the Seal of the Orichalcos.<p>

"No! Mou Hitori No Boku!" I stopped as I felt something wrap around my extended arm. I looked to see my partner's apparition clinging to me, refusing to let me play the card.

"Aibou…"

"You can't play that card," he desperately pleaded as his grip tightened, "They're waiting for you to use it!" He had a point. Raphael did say I would play it. But couldn't he see there was no other option? Too many things were at stake for me to lose now.

Me. That's right. I was the one dueling, not Aibou. This was a fight between me and Raphael. I had to play the Seal, for the sake of justice. I explained this to Yugi as I yanked my arm back with a little more force, perhaps, than was necessary. I should have apologized or made sure I hadn't hurt him, but I was so focused on being victorious, all I could think of and feel was my own desire to take down my opponent.

I knew the card was evil, I wasn't suffering from some delusion that it wasn't. However, it was also powerful and if I used its power for the greater good, then surely all would be forgiven. With a determined stare directed at Raphael, I announced my intentions and played the card.

-YGO-

I was shocked when Mou Hitori No Boku yanked his arm back. He was never this aggressive in his duels, so he must have been really feeling the tension. Even I had to admit it looked bleak. Still, that was no excuse to play that dreadful card.

There had to be some other thing we could do. He was a master strategist, he could find another way. But sadly, he didn't seem to think he could, and before I knew it, he had played the card.

A bright light came from the duel disk, and then it burst outwards to form the seal. I remember screaming out in agony as I was not only pushed back by the Orichalcos, but also as the mental link between mine and my other self's thoughts was cut off, leaving us unable to communicate. The last thing I remember before I blacked out was Mou Hitori No Boku standing there crying out as the power of the Orichalcos overwhelmed him.

-YGO-

The power of the Seal of the Orichalcos was indescribable. I felt stronger, more powerful, and undefeatable. I knew I could win. It seemed like the easiest thing in the world, especially when Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight earned the power of the Orichalcos, becoming all the more stronger and escaping the crystalline prison. That is, until Timeaus vanished, leaving Dark Magician girl alone on the field. I couldn't understand it. Why had this happened?

Raphael laughed. He explained to me that the powers of the Legendary Dragon and the Seal of the Orichalcos were incompatible, coming from the light and darkness. I don't know exactly what was said, as I was so engrossed in disbelief, but the message I received was clear—Timeaus wasn't going to be helping me.

Apparently, neither would my partner. I couldn't hear anything from him. Was he mad that I hadn't headed his warning? That had to be it. After all, we'd played in the Seal before and we were still able to communicate. For whatever reason, Aibou was silent and I was completely alone in this duel.

That's when something inside me snapped. I don't know what caused it exactly, maybe the immense power at my disposal or the fact that I felt no one's support but my own, but something made forget everything that had been taught to me since I first awoke from the depths of the puzzle.

I vaguely recall using the card in Raphael's hand and summoning monsters from the graveyard. I have a feeling I sacrificed them, but I cannot honestly remember. Though the thing that stands out most in my mind was the fact that I had distorted my monsters' integrity with the dark power of the Orichalcos, and I had lost touch with the heart of the cards. I believe the latter was what caused my downfall.

Raphael played Aldos, drew my sacrificed monsters from the grave, and had me see what I did to them. Seeing their sad, angry gazes brought be closer to who I was before. I felt the guilt of what I had done immediately. I had sacrificed them needlessly, and I failed to honour them.

Before I could properly apologize, Aldos absorbed the power of my monsters and made to attack me. I felt it as my life points plummeted to zero. I had lost.

-YGO-

I woke up in a purplish place that sort reminded me of the Shadow Realm. It was desolate, dark, and devoid of any positive feelings. The was one thing that was different was a circular window with an imprint of the seal on it that showed the duel.

I couldn't believe it. He really did play the card. It wasn't a dream. I felt tears come to my eyes as I watched Mou Hitori No Boku. It was like he was a man possessed. He kept bragging that he could use the Orichalcos so well, he sacrificed our monsters without so much as a single thought. But worst of all, he sacrificed the Dark Magician Girl. We promised her we would save her world, and here he was, treating her as if she were nothing more than a tool. It broke my heart to see it.

Still, when he lost the duel, I wasn't any less scared for him. Any second, the seal would take him away forever. No. I couldn't let that happen. Sure, he made a mistake using the seal, but he wasn't a bad guy. He didn't deserve this. I didn't think I could stand it if I let this happen. On another, but no less important, note, if this happened, who would stop Doma? My friends and I were strong, but I knew that Mou Hitori No Boku was the only one capable of saving us all. He had to stay. There had to be something I could do.

At that moment, the puzzle glowed and suddenly, my path was clear. I knew it would hurt him, but it was the only way to save my best friend. I gripped the puzzle and hit it against the window as hard as I could, which wasn't very hard at all. But it worked. There was a bright light and I found myself in the green luminescence of the Orichalcos. Without hesitation, I extended my arms out in front of me and ran forward.

-YGO-

I still couldn't believe it. I was defeated in more ways than one. My world was crumbling around me. I lost the duel, I lost my monsters' trust, and I lost my faith that I was a good pharaoh. Now I was going to lose my soul. I could only hope my partner was okay. I hoped he would remember me for the good times we've shared and not as the person I had been in our last moment together.

Just then I felt something push me out of the centre on the Seal. I turned around in shock to see none other than my partner. At first I couldn't understand what was happening. What was he doing here?

"Aibou?" I said as I saw his body start to fade away and realization struck, "Aibou!" He smiled sadly at me, as if _he_ were the guilty one. I could have pushed him back out of the way, but I was just so frozen in shock at his sudden appearance, and even more so at his words.

"It only needs one of us. I trust you, Mou Hitori No Boku." He had nearly completely vanished at that point and I was finally able to do something more than just stand there like some Ra forsaken idiot. I called out for him again as he disappeared and the Seal of the Orichalcos with him. Everything went black.

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><p><strong>Olivia: Okay, chapter one up! Please review!<strong>

**Desirae: And please be as brustally honest as possible.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Olivia: Thanks **Luna vampire princess, Agent Moonlight, **and **Sairey13** for reviewing! And thanks to all you who are following or favourited this story!**

**Desirae: Yea, thanks to you all.**

**Olivia: Wow, Des, you're being really nice today!**

**Desirae: *glances at Liv* ... you're a stupid weirdo.**

**Olivia: ... I knew it couldn't last. Anyway, I was originally going to make this a three chapter story (one being before Yugi was gone, one during the time he was gone, and one after), but the chapters ended up being too long. So I'm splitting them into smaller ones. Oh, and I'm using most of the English names, but there will be references to the Japanese version as well.**

**Desirae: You just took five tries to spell "splitting" right.**

**Olivia: Okay! I'm sorry for calling you nice! Happy?**

**Desirae: Meh, ask me again when this chapter's done.**

**Olivia: Enjoy!**

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><p>I knew when I woke up something was wrong. Seeing Joey, Duke, and Tristan standing over me made me realize what it was. Aibou was gone. I tried feeling for his presence, trying to find some connection to him, but it was as if his light had never existed, and instead all that existed was a dark, vast void of nothingness. What had I done?<p>

Everyone was praising me for beating the Orichalcos, for beating the system and outsmarting the Seal. Their compliments just made me feel all the more disgusted with myself. I didn't deserve their admiration, not after what I did. I was the one who caused all this.

Joey cocked his head to the side upon seeing my expression and asked if I was alright. I shook my head, trying to keep the tears from falling. That was proving to be a near impossible feat.

"No, Joey. I'm far from alright."

I told them what happened the best I could. At first they didn't understand. They thought I was talking about myself being the sacrifice. I thought I was being perfectly clear, and having to spell it out for them, to say the actual words was almost too much to bear. Because it wasn't me that was taken. It was… it was…

I dropped to my knees and, all dignity and pride forgotten, cried out for my lost partner, my lost hikari, my lost friend. Tears sprang from my eyes and I didn't bother trying to stop them this time. I slammed my fists on the ground and let the crystalline droplets shatter upon impact with the dirt.

I don't know how long I stayed like that. It could have been mere seconds, minutes or even hours and I could have remained there for that much longer. The only reason I got up at all was because Joey grasped the front of my jacket and lifted me in the air, placing me gently on my feet so I wouldn't fall over. He let go and straightened out the wrinkled fabric.

"Hey buddy, come on. There's nothin' we can do here. Let's just go back to the others. I'm sure if we all work together we can come up with a plan to fix this in no time flat!" I nodded, not entirely believing him. I just kept seeing my partner's face in the emerald glow of the Orichalcos every time I closed my eyes. To add to the guilt of what I had done, I found myself blinking far more often than I knew was normal, just to see him again. Oh Ra, what was wrong with me?

I turned back to Rebecca's horse and climbed on the saddle. Rebecca… I knew she would hate me for this. She held such affection for my hikari, even if it was an unrequited love. I doubted she would ever forgive me.

Before I knew it, we were back at the trailer and I had to face what I had done.

-YGO-

I groaned and my eyelids fluttered open. At first I was confused, but as my mind began to clear, I was shocked at what I saw. I don't know exactly what I thought I would see once my soul was taken, but it certainly wasn't thousands of people sleeping in their own individual floating bubbles in the midst of some reddish void. At least, I hoped they were sleeping. Everyone was asleep there. So, why wasn't I?

Maybe it was because Mou Hitori No Boku was still in our body, so it was still walking around instead of just sitting there like everyone else's. Or maybe it was because the Legendary Dragons picked me as one of the chosen duelists so the Orichalcos didn't work as well against me. Well, for whatever reason, I seemed to be the only one awake.

"Hello?" I called out. My echo was the only sound that came back to me, confirming my suspicions. Everything was deathly silent. Okay, that was a poor choice of words. I shivered and looked around before spotting Pegasus.

"Pegasus!" I called out. He didn't stir. I tried pushing out against the barrier keeping me imprisoned, but I couldn't seem to exert much energy. I sighed and continued to look around. My gaze fell on something in the distance. I couldn't quite see it, but it looked like some kind of yellow eye surrounded in shadows. I leaned forward until my face was right up against the barrier and strained my eyes to see it better. I gasped and fell back. It _was_ an eye. It was absorbing the people closest to it… and it was drawing the rest of us closer.

If that was what happened when souls were taken, then so many people were in danger. I won't lie; it was bad. It was very, very bad. I took a few deep breaths to calm myself down. Mou Hitori No Boku could save us. He _would_ save us. With his abilities and our friends' help and support, we could overcome this. I leaned back and tried to relax.

I guess apart from the, um, uncomfortable feeling of being slowly pulled in by a distant soul destroying force and the growing loneliness, it wasn't so bad. I was safe for the time being, and I had been lonely before, so I could handle being alone for a little while. Still, to be lonely yet surrounded by people was never a good feeling, especially when said people couldn't so much as open their eyes.

I was beginning to worry about my friends as I sat there thinking. I knew they were strong, but this was probably the greatest challenge we had ever faced. I hoped they would be okay. They had to be.

-YGO-

As we made our way back inside the trailer, Rebecca's words echoed in my head. '_Why did you stay while my darling disappeared?_ _If you were really a great pharaoh, you would never have done that to poor Yugi! It should have been you, not him! It's all your fault!'_

Her words were true, both in the sense that they were correct and in the sense that they pierced straight through my heart like an was all my fault.

However, I had learned not to voice this opinion lest Joey punch me again. I still felt the burning pain in my face from when he convinced me to "get a grip." I knew I deserved it, even if he only meant it to shock me out of my downward spiral of self-destruction. I still deserved the pain for what I had done.

Suddenly, I realized something. It wasn't even my body that was feeling the pain. It was Aibou's. I still felt the burning pain in _his _face. Joey gently placed me on _his _feet. I slammed _his_ fists on the ground. Tears sprang from _his_ eyes. I fell to _his_ knees. This was his body, and any pain that meant to damage me would damage my partner's body as well.

I vowed from then on I would protect this body the best I could. I may have failed to protect him once, but I wouldn't fail on this. If we did save him as the others believed we would, I wanted his body to be in the same condition it was in when he left it, if not better. I owed him that much at least.

We sat around the table to discuss our strategy. So far, nothing was working out. Professor Hawkins' research was destroyed and Rebecca discovered that the ruins of Atlantis were also gone. Doma was turning out to be a formidable opponent. They seemed to always be one step ahead of us.

Professor Hawkins came in the room and told us what he had found out about this organization. They looked like they were descendants of Atlantis, and probably only destroyed the ruins because they were hiding something in their history, something they wanted to keep secret.

The professor went on to say that Atlantis was an advanced civilization, a paradise on earth, until a creature was called forth from the depths by an evil king. My thoughts went back what Raphael had said to me in the duel, about whether or not I was a good king.

I couldn't listen to the rest of what he said about that king. I knew it couldn't have been me because of the timeline, but still, the conversation drew up all these questions.

Was I truly a good king? Or had a been evil like the one from Atlantis, who drew his power from the Orichalcos as I drew power from my Millennium Puzzle? The parallels between us made me sick. As well, the fact that I had did what I had done didn't help in easing my uncertainty of my past nature, or my present one for that matter.

When I returned to the conversation, we had determined that we had to go to Florida. A museum there housed the last of the information on Atlantis, and maybe how to destroy this monster.

Everyone seemed weirdly happy about going to Florida to rescue our friend. I couldn't understand it. Sure, I knew they were upset about our loss. How could they not be? Nevertheless, I seemed to be the only one truly suffering, with maybe the exception of Rebecca. Even in her case, I knew it wasn't the same kind of suffering.

I suppose it was just the group's standard optimism that we could overcome this like we have other situations in the past, but this optimism made me feel all the more alone.

The silence in my head didn't help the matter. I kept expecting Aibou to say something, anything, whether it be a sentiment of support or even harsh words saying I didn't deserve to be the one who was free. Instead, all I got was a silence that resonated from the darkness he once occupied. I missed him.

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><p><strong>Desirae: You included Yugi's POV as well?<strong>

**Olivia: Yea, why?**

**Desirae: Nothing, not a thing...**

**Olivia: Seriously, what is it?**

**Desirae: Bugger off! I just don't see why it was necessary.**

**Olivia: Okay then, fine. How would you write it?**

**Desirae: I don't have to write. That's your job. Now if you excuse me, I'm going to get some pizza before the good pieces are all gone.**

**Olivia: Ugh, anyway, I hope you all liked this chapter and... wait, we have pizza? Anywho, please review! **


	3. Chapter 3

**Olivia: Happy Candependence Day!**

**Desirae: Are you on something? Chocolate maybe?**

**Olivia: Well, since I missed the holiday of my home and native land and most of the holiday of my neighbours, I figured I'd combine both.**

**Desirae: It's chocolate, isn't it.**

**Olivia: ... maybe.**

**Desirae: I knew it. But why "can dependence" day? We're honouring cans now?**

**Olivia: No, it's a combination of-**

**Desirae: *places hand over stomach* I pledge dependence to the can, the shelf on which it stands, one tin for food, deliciousness, with preservatives and nutrition for all.**

**Olivia: ... you are so weird.**

**Desirae: Says the girl who came up with "can dependence" day.**

**Olivia: Touche. Okay thanks to **DarkHeartInThe Sky, Sairey13, HAVOCSTRIKE2395, **and **Luna Vampire Princess** for reviewing, and sorry for such a huge delay.**

**Desirae: And thanks for putting up with her weirdness.**

**Olivia: Hey!**

**Desirae: Enjoy!**

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><p>To get to Florida, we first needed a means to get there. We decided to try to contact Kaiba, the only one we knew with the power to send us anywhere in the world with his will.<p>

After setting everything up, all of us gathered around the web cam, Joey leaning in close so he was no more than an inch away from the lens. Kaiba took the call, much to the surprise of the others. I still wasn't feeling much of anything at that moment. Even if I did feel something more than hollowness, I still wouldn't have been too surprised. Despite everything Kaiba might have said or done to prove the contrary, we were his friends. Joey started talking to the Kaiba's before Mokuba interrupted him.

"Joey, leave the cam alone." Joey laughed then leaned back, apologizing. The image of Kaiba on the screen rolled his eyes.

"What do you want, Wheeler?" We explained our situation to Kaiba, hoping he would be sympathetic for once, or at least want to know about Doma enough to be generous. It seemed as though we had him at least interested until Joey brought up Aibou's—no, I didn't deserve to have him as a partner anymore, so that name no longer felt right—until Joey brought up Yugi's name.

I remained as stoic as possible, trying to ignore the stabbing pain of guilt in my heart at hearing his name, and turned my head. I think it was this action that confirmed what Kaiba suspected Joey had meant. I had lost.

That's when the shouting started. I hadn't expected him to be this angry with me, though I guess I should have known. He had been trying to beat me ever since we first met, and for someone else to do so was like a slap in the face to him. He said as much to me in his rant, in his own conceited and condescending manner. I spoke his name quietly, both out of shock and to get him to calm down.

For Kaiba to be this emotional only stood to make me feel lower than I had before, if that was possible. He may not have cared much that I lost my best friend, but he did care enough about my loss to become verbally violent, even calling me a stray dog before hanging up. We would need to find some other way to Florida.

-YGO-

Silence. Deafening silence. I never knew before that such a thing was possible. I had always assumed it was some kind of metaphor. But the absolute soundlessness that pressed on my ears was definitely not metaphorical. That quiet only worked to amplify the feeling of loneliness that grew steadily within me.

I could handle it though. It wasn't anything I hadn't felt before. Actually prior to solving the puzzle, I didn't have any friends. It was pretty pathetic, I was pretty pathetic. To be surrounded by people and feel completely alone is the worst feeling imaginable. Granted, at that time the people I was surrounded by were, well, conscious, but the feeling is still the same. Completely, utterly alone.

Memories of a past I chose to forget welled up without warning. Sitting alone during lunch while everyone else talked happily. Getting pushed around because people didn't notice me or they took too much notice. Lying awake at night because I was too afraid to sleep, knowing what and who was waiting for me the next day. Those were the worst days of my life… and reliving them was just as horrible.

I was wrong. I couldn't handle it. The overwhelming sense of isolation was too much. It brought back too many familiar emotions I had thought I had gotten past.

All I could do was sit there and drown.

-YGO-

I took a deep breath. I knew Tea meant well, but her trying to cheer me up wasn't helping my mood. All it did was make me more depressed. I excused myself and left the train car. I needed to be alone.

Alone. That word was all too true for me. I was alone without my part—without Yugi. All I could do was see it over and over in my head like a video. I kept seeing him disappear, me helpless to stop it. No, not helpless. I could have pushed him back out of the way, like he had done with me. But I hadn't done anything. I just stood there and watched. If I had only listened to him and not played the seal, he'd still be here with me. We would have lost, but we would still be together.

With that thought, I instantly felt incapable of anything. How could I possibly hope to be of any help to anyone, to him, if I couldn't even save him when I had the opportunity? How could I hope to live up to my position as a chosen duelist if I couldn't do the right thing? If I couldn't win duels? By disregarding Yugi's words, by going against his warning I had failed.

Oh Ra, I was not cut out for the task. I was nothing without him. There was no way I could fight Doma. If I couldn't fight, I couldn't win. If I couldn't win, I couldn't free those trapped from Doma. If I couldn't save them, then…

The image of him disappearing made its thousandth appearance before my eyes and I felt all hope abandon me, as I had abandoned him. Dispirited tears cascaded down my cheeks and I punched the wall. Sharp pain erupted in my hand from the abrupt contact.

At that moment, my vow to protect his body felt silly. There was no point. Was he here to feel his heart beat? Would he feel it if I broke this skin and shed this blood? Would he ever again smile that once eternal, wonderful smile I, and everyone, took for granted? No, no, and no. He would never know any of these again, nor would he ever know of anything else connected to this life. Because I—because I—

I sank to the ground as the truth, the horrible, detestable truth, I had hoped to forever deny escaped my lips.

"I've lost him forever."

It was a while before I did anything other than sit there. The only reason I got up at all was because I couldn't stand feeling so alone anymore. This feeling of isolation was unbearable. Of course I had our friends, and they were trying to help, but none of them were him. They could never hope to replace him.

I started wandering aimlessly around the train until Tea, Joey, and Tristan found me. They told me that all the people on the train had vanished and they suspected Doma. My grief turned to anger at the mention of that wretched group, and something within me snapped back into place. I sprang into action. We had to get to the conductor. This train needed to be stopped. If Doma was behind this, it could only mean trouble for us and a runaway train would only add to our problems.

I ran down the aisle with the others behind me, and tore open the door at the back. The air was cooler as the wind currents blew in through the space between the two cars. I crossed the coupling and was about to open the door, when I felt a jolt from behind and heard a metallic wrenching sound. I looked back to see the rest of the train and the others falling behind. The coupling had snapped.

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><p><strong>Desirae: Why do you keep including Yugi's POV?<strong> **I thought we agreed it was stupid.**

**Olivia: No, you said it was stupid. I like it.**

**Desirae: Whatever.**

**Olivia: You're too critical of me!**

**Desirae: What a coincidence, you're so annoying to me. I want a popsicle, you want one too?**

**Olivia: Oh, um... sure.**

**Desirae: Great, they're in the freezer. Make sure to get me cherry.**

**Olivia: You suck.**

**Desirae: Yea, yea I know, now make with the popsicle gettin'.**

**Olivia: Ugh, please review!**

**Desirae: Popsicle!**


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